Herbal viagra could be key to rainforest conservation in Kenya
May 2008
Source: Reported by Daniel Nyassy, Nairobi, Kenya on
www.allafrica.com
Plundering the tropical rainforest in the Arabuko Sokoke forest in the Malindi district of Kenya is a major problem for those engaged in conservation efforts. AllAfrica.com reported at the beginning of May that illegal removal of trees continues, despite many efforts to stop it. The illegal trade in rare wood for carved objects and gifts for export is still very active.
However, help for conservation is now coming from an unexpected source – the local herbalists.
Kenya is currently seeing a massive growth of interest in herbal medicine and natural medicine – and more people are realising that the rainforest has many rare plants that are unique sources of herbal medicines. Conserving those species of plant has now taken on new meaning because if they disappear, so does the treatment they can provide.
A community project has been set up centred around the Arabuko Sokoke forest and 169 plant species with known medicinal value have been identified, one of which appears to have a potent effect on a man’s sex drive. Herbal remedies for impotence are apparently very popular - not quite as famous as the little blue pill, but in the heart of Kenya, people swear by herbs for impotence and other problems.
Other herbs are said to help with childbirth, high blood pressure, and coughs and colds. Any illegal logging activities threaten these rare species, as more natural rainforest is destroyed for agriculture, as well as to obtain the prized wood.
The project has set up 26 separate herbal groups, some of which have their own herbal medicine farms that are trying to save the most fragile species of medicinal plant. The message is spreading and, so far, 50 villages in the local area have become more aware of which plants they should be saving. | 
